Even though I have not posted a resin update in quite some time, I still get asked all the time what supplies I used for a certain piece or what supplies do I need to achieve this effect. Most people getting started go to a local craft store and purchase what is available – the basic resin, Popsicle sticks, and a bunch of glitter and stickers. What do you purchase though when you want to advance to the next level, make your life easier, or go past the glittery sticker pieces. Don’t get me wrong, they are fun to make but you are limited to what is available and they can get very monotonous.

I thought I would start a series of posts sharing some of my suggestions on more advanced or alternative supplies available for use with resin. For this post, I thought I would focus on colorants and embeds.

Alternative colorants: I know a lot of resin artists color with acrylic paints. I personally do not recommend them for various reasons which I will save for a later post. My go to for solid colors are Alumilite colorant dyes. I really like the black colorant as it creates a very opaque black. They can be purchased in small 1 ounce sizes or in bulk in very large bottles. The 1 ounce size is perfect for the average crafter and lasts for a very long time. The bottles can be purchased directly on the Alumilite website or on Amazon.com here. Castin’ Craft also makes liquid colorants but I prefer the consistency and applicator bottles that Alumilite offers.

If your looking for something more sparkly and opalescent, try out Jacquard Pearl Ex mica powders. The large sets include everything from metallic silvers and golds to bright opal pinks and purples. About five years ago or so, I purchased a 32 pc complete set and have not run out of any of the mica powders yet. A little go a very long way especially when you are working with jewelry sized pieces. The 32 pc set runs about $35-40. They are also available in smaller sets and individual colors. There are many sets available on Amazon.

In addition to Pearl Ex mica powders, an alternative would be to use make-up powders. You can recycle old make-up palettes by pulverizing panned make-up into powders or you can shave off what you need as necessary. I also purchased an off brand large set of loose eye make-up powders to use with my resin. I do find they are a bit more finicky than using the Pearl Ex powders. I have had a few of the make-up pigments accelerate the resin working time but do like using them especially when you are looking for color without the opalescence. To achieve just color without the shimmery effect, choose a more matte, non-shimmer powder.

Embeds: Of course when most people think of resin jewelry, they go directly to the photo type Scrabble or bezel pendants. Customizing a pendant with photos is always fun but who likes to coat images in Mod Podge multiple times or seal the images in packing tape to use them without the resin staining the image. It works but it adds a lot of time and steps. I recommend upgrading to a better photo paper. Thin, inexpensive photo papers have paper backers which allow the resin to infiltrate the photo paper and creates what looks like a stain. I personally use Canon Glossy II inkjet photo paper. Make sure it has the II in the name. This paper has a polymer plastic-like backing and requires no sealing. Of course there are other brands that make higher grade papers similar to Canon’s Glossy II but I have always matched my photo paper to my printer brand.

Resin is also widely used with dried flowers but everyone that has pressed flowers know that they get discolored and of course flat on pressing which is great if your going for that look but I prefer the microwave method for drying flowers. It keeps the flowers shape and keeps the colors more vibrant. Of course, it is also super quick especially with smaller flowers. There is a really old but good YouTube video that shows the process here. You don’t need any elaborate drying kits, you can just purchase the silica gel on its own here. Just add a plastic container, microwave, and flowers.

Another of my favorite items to embed are transparencies. There are a lot of molds that are not glossy and create a satin or frosted like appearance on casted pieces. For example, many of Wilton’s molds have a velvet type surface which when molded create that frost-like appearance which I love to use as a backdrop for a transparency. You can do this by working backwards than normal. Instead of placing your images face down, you would place them in face up. I couldn’t seem to find any photos of pieces I did like this but in one of my resin updates on YouTube, I show quite a few of them. Also using them for completely see-through jewelry pieces is lovely too. The person’s skin becomes the background. They are a bit less bright but create a cool effect. Here are some I have been working on for quite a while using recycled square tubing. So sorry it’s not the greatest photo as I just snapped it with my phone. The pieces still need to be domed and I am thinking of having my husband grind a groove around the belly of the tubing so I can securely wire wrap a bail around it. I use inkjet transparency paper. The paper has a special coating on it to accept the ink. They also have a laser printer version. Before you print your images, I recommend increasing the saturation of your images. It might not look correct on the screen but you will get a much more vibrant print on the transparency. There are a lot of brands of inkjet transparency paper but currently I use the Apollo brand version. It dries quickly and have had good luck with the film. The printer version of transparency film is not cheap but 50 sheets should last a very long time. It is available for purchase on Amazon here.

Another thing that can be used as an embed or on its own and domed with resin is shrink plastic. I absolutely love shrink plastic, probably due to a lot experimenting with it as a child. Everyone remembers playing with Shrinky Dinks at one time or another. People are doing amazing things with it. I have multiple types of the plastic from the standard clear and white to an inkjet version of both. I prefer the Grafix brand as they have it available in bulk 50 sheet packs which can be purchased on Amazon.

Don’t have the money for shrink film? Try using #6 plastic. Look for it on the bottom of plastic containers – the types you get cut fruit in from the produce section or take home type containers. It will have the triangle recycle symbol with the #6 in the middle. You aren’t able to use it with your printer but you can definitely use sharpies and try it out.

Lastly, don’t forget about embedding things like sequins, scrapbook embellishments, found objects, micro marbles, beads, seashells, resin cabochons, polymer clay pieces, hardware, old watch parts, or even hair, baby teeth, or cremains for memory jewelry. Don’t limit yourself to what is on the craft store shelves, why not take your pieces to the next level? Especially if your selling your pieces, wouldn’t you rather command $40 or more for one jewelry piece than making multiple cheaper pieces. Anyway, that’s just my take. Next in the series, products to make resin crafting easier.

Wow! I did not realize it has been over two years since my last blog post. Time sure does get away from you fast. I know I owe explanations as I have gotten many emails regarding new molds and restocking of out of stock molds. To make a long story short, around the time of my last post I had just lost my transcription job to voice recognition software, had some medical issues, started a new business, and was in college full-time. Time just slipped away. So many times I have tried to get things going again but life would get in the way from the selling of our rental house to being back in school but most notably a little over a year ago in April 2014 my father was diagnosed with an aggressive form of kidney cancer. He unfortunately lost his battle in October 2014. I miss him every single day. The fog is clearing a bit, so to speak, and I have some time off from classes till January. I am hoping now is a great time to get organized and get back into molds, resin, jewelry, and crafting – the things I love.

I have so much planned but don’t want to promise anything as far as dates and times but look out first for restocks of the tie, mustache, and frame bow molds. They are the first thing on my list. I need to create new master mold pieces as the originals were broken. If you aren’t already and have been looking for those molds, please follow my Facebook page as that will be the first place I post about them. Looking forward to reconnecting with all my previous TJL customers.

Because of my other etsy store (RockinResin.Etsy.com), in a short period of time I have amassed a decent collection of resin cabochons and lately I have been in a Decoden kind of mood. So far I have done some glasses, memory sticks, cellphone cases and chargers, jars, and a few other cute things with flat surfaces. A few weeks ago on a Facebook group I posted some pictures of my cellphone cases and received quite a few private messages asking about the cases and how to do them, mostly a lot about adhesive.

I thought I would take this chance to do a semi-tutorial on Decoden phone cases focusing mainly on techniques and products used in the particular cases I made. All cases are standard Iphone 4g plastic cases that cover the back and sides of the phone and all cabochons, rhinestones, and pearls came from my etsy store (RockinResin.Etsy.com). Links to all other items used will be at the end of the post.

Beginning with case #1 (Betty Boop phone case):

I started by lightly sanding the case using some fine grit sandpaper which gives the items a bit more grip as the cases were very smooth and shiny.

Next, I planned placement and attached the major resin cabochons, i.e. the large Betty Boop, rose, gem, and lips using E6000 glue. Along with the E6000, I used a bit of hot glue from a hot glue gun to give it that initial bond to hold it in place while the E6000 adhesive dried which takes about 24 hours.

I then attached the smaller cabochons using just E6000, so they would have a bit of give in placement as I placed the half pearls.

Now it’s time for the more tedious work of placing the half pearls. I used 6 mm and 4 mm half pearls and also used a rhinestone pick up tool and rhinestone trays I also offer. I personally own a more expensive pick up tool by Silhouette which I love for larger pieces but I find that it has too much stickiness for placing delicate items. My glue of choice is Gemtac by Beacon Industries. When I first started, I tried many different gem glues and by far Gemtac worked the best when adhering to plastic, in my opinion. E6000 would probably work better but I am just too messy with it working with tiny things. The key to using Gemtac is to not push your gem flat to the surface of the case – squeezing all the glue from underneath. You will not get a good adhesion doing that. You just kind of lay it onto the glue and let the glue dry and evaporate from under the gem. Try not to get the glue too thick. Place your gems to your personal preference.

Allow your piece to dry thoroughly. I leave my cases for about a week to ensure that they are completely dry and everything is stuck properly.

Case #2 (Bear) and #3 (Bat Cameo):

These two cases feature a very different technique – siliconized latex caulk. You do not want to use 100% silicone caulk as it will not work as an adhesive and is hard to colorize. Here is the type I use – Kwik Seal Plus by DAP.

First gather a disposable cup, your silicone, and I tinted my silicone using mica powder by Pearl-Ex using flamingo pink. I used a Dixie cup and tongue depressors and filled half the cup with silicone and tinted to personal taste.

Once thoroughly mixed, gather a disposable cake decorating bag, a coupler, and the cake decorating tip of your choice. I used a #14 open star tip. Here is a good video showing you how to assemble and load your bag and the method I use. Once loaded, twist the end to keep the air from inside your bag and even flow of silicone out the tip.

It is your personal choice on how to apply your silicone to the surface of the cases. I have very bad carpal tunnel and find that I shake too much to be too detailed, so I use the dollop method to add the caulk on the bear case and used the caulk first like icing a cake and then dollops to finish the edges on the bat case.

You have about an hour or less to work with the caulk before it starts setting up. The caulk is an adhesive, so no other adhesive is needed. For larger pieces like the cameo setting, I added an extra dollop to the back for extra adhesion. This is an extremely durable method for Decoden.

Allow again a week to thoroughly cure. Thicker areas of caulk may appear completely cured, but the inner portion may still be curing and may deform if handled to early.

Lastly, I wanted to do a simple case.

I had received some faux rhinestone bling in a RAK from a friend. It was a bit too stiff to try to cover the entire case (sides and all), so I cut the rhinestone bling to fit just the back. It cuts easy with scissors but a bit difficult to cut for the camera hole. I used multiple passes with an X-ACTO blade to get a nice clean cut.

Next, I applied a generous amount of E6000 glue to the case surface, positioned the bling, and used some clamps to keep it in place and secure while it dried. You could also use a Teflon or silicone type work surface with a heavy book on top to keep it in place while it dries. I let it thoroughly dry before I continued work on it.

The edges were not pretty, so I used my left over silicone mix caulk to pipe ribbons of silicone on the edge and finished with some dollops.

Instead of using glue for the cabochons, I decided to use the remaining caulk to use as the glue for both the Hello Kitty words cabochon and the black glitter bow mostly because they were going to span across the already done edges and I thought it would look much nicer than glue.

Lastly, I used glue to glue on the HK head.

I am by no means an expert in Decoden but thought this might help others just starting out trying to figure out what products to use and where to begin.

Just a quick update… I have added two new molds to the store. For anyone that plays a video game like Minecraft, you will recognize this type of heart – an 8 bit heart. I original was not going to release this as I just put it together for my hubby but I had so many requests, I decided to release it. I had no idea there were so many 8 bit lovers.

The second one is a Christmas Holly Wreath molded from a vintage brooch. Its the perfect size for a pendant, ornaments, magnets, or of course a brooch. You really could do more than Christmas with it. I just love the long tailed bow on it.

I have 3 more molds to release this week and will be posting updates as they are listed.

Two posts in less than a week, can you believe it? Today I decided to do a book review on Exploring Resin Jewelry by Heidi Boyd. I recently received this book not to long ago through my Crafter’s Choice book club (if you don’t belong, I will place the info below – great way to get lots of book inexpensively). There are very few books out there that focus primarily on resin related jewelry, so I jumped at the chance when this book arrived as a choice. These are my opinions on the book and am reviewing it purely from the resin aspect.

Exploring Resin Jewelry is published by North Light Books with a retail price of $24.99 (available through Amazon for $16.32, link below). It features 128 pages with approximately 20 of them being the standard introduction, materials, random resin is dangerous safety warnings and disclaimers, and some jewelry and finishing techniques. For a beginner, this information I can imagine would be very helpful but if you are past the beginner stage, this will be a section you will likely flip right past.

The book is a project based book featuring 25 projects from making scrabble pendants to the pretty transparent piece you see on the cover. Coming to you as someone in an advanced resin category as I have been working with it since 2000, I have mixed feelings on the projects. Especially when you don’t get to take a test run of a book in a bookstore, you never really know what you are going to get. There is a strong focus in the projects on the jewelry aspect. I would say 50% of each project tutorial is on average putting the jewelry together. A quick run down of the projects includes:

Scrabble pendants.

Sprinkles in a bezel.

Circuit board in a bezel.

Map in a bezel.

Scrapbook paper and a scrapbook embellishment in a bezel.

Faux typewriter keys using a bezel.

More paper in a bezel earrings.

More images in a bezel bracelet.

Polymer clay bezel using UV resin.

Steampunk pendant using copper pipe.

Resin as a sealant for an element in a pendant.

Doming resin on an image.

Resin to seal an image.

Shell embedded resin pendant.

Resin bangle with credit card embedded pieces.

The transparent pendant seen on the front cover.

Another image embedded in a mold.

Faux sea glass.

Resin in a flower mold.

Making a mold putty mold and using it.

Faux cloisonne earrings.

Fabric in resin.

More embedded items in resin mold.

Image transfer on polymer clay and UV resin pendant.

Stamped image on resin clay.

I will start with the good things. Her projects use some unconventional materials which was nice to see. There is also a project for making faux cloisonne which I really liked. The pictures are nice and clear and close up. For someone just starting out, it shows a lot of beginner resin techniques in the tutorials.

On the downside of the book (again coming purely on the resin aspects of the book), Ms. Boyd has quite a few jewelry making related books but from what I can tell doing a quick search of her blog has never posted anything about resin. The reason I even looked was because many of her resin pieces in the photographs in the book show issues and being the perfectionist I am, I had to check. Maybe I am being picky here but I expect someone being published about resin to be an expert in that subject matter. I also found that some steps to the finished piece were skipped, mostly in the glazing aspect. There is one piece in particular that I know when the original came out of the mold it was a bit hazy and in the finished photograph it is just as sparkly as can be but no where in the project is she glazing the item. I know this from experience also as the mold used produces more of a satin finish on pieces. You would expect that all steps to the finished piece would be shown in each tutorial. I also found that so many of the projects feature images or items in bezels. I would expect a book with exploring in the title would include more advanced techniques than just bezels even though it says simple techniques.

All that being said, it is not a bad book by any means. If your out of ideas, this might give you some inspiration to get you going again. If your searching for a book on marrying your resin to jewelry, this would probably be a very helpful book. If your a newbie resin user, this would be a helpful book to you. If your looking for an advanced resin technique book, I would recommend Youtube, forums, and a quick search of Google to find your answers.

Hello, its been quite some time since I posted a blog post. A lot of changes for me since my last post. A lot of them not really worth mentioning but the most major one is that I left my job, so I am currently a full-time starving artist (LOL). I left by choice and am trying it out at least for the holidays. So, in an effort to get myself back into blogging more regularly, I am going to start off with something simple – a jewelry update. If you watch my videos, you might have seen a quick glimpse of these almost a year ago. It really is much more fun to create than the sell. I am slowly beginning to catch up on my jewelry… all the mundane chores of sanding, glazing, adding screw eyes, adding wire-wrapped bails, etc.

Anyway, I have been hoarding these pieces for quite some time partly because I have not seen anyone else do something like this and was not sure if I wanted to share them with the world and partly because I love their saturated glittery and opalescent colors so much and the sharp contrast with the black acrylic and thought I might just keep them for myself but a girl can only wear so much jewelry. I have added about 5 so far and am adding a few more every day. All my jewelry is listed on etsy as its much easier to keep track of there which you can find by clicking here.

I am thinking about selling kits and instructions on how to make these. If anyone is interested, please leave a comment below.

It has been quite some time since I updated my blog. Do you ever get in one of those creative funks? Hopefully it won’t last long. Probably a nice order of new product would fix it which I haven’t done lately, might be time for some shopping. 🙂 I have been working on finishing of pieces and making jewelry. I have also been practicing and working on some polymer clay sculpted pieces. Most of my molds have been designed by me and build from materials I had manufactured but I wanted to take it a step further and actually sculpt them. I have a whole tray of them I have been working on and show a few in the video below. Not perfect but I think they will make nice resin jewelry pieces.

In addition, I have finally released some new molds. Some of these have been in the works for months but just didn’t get to it. Watch out for a a lot more because I have a drawer of ideas and pieces still to go. Right now the new pieces are two different types of thought bubbles, teddy bear head, teddy bear fully body, and a panda head. Take a look at the video below to check them out and you can also see some of the pieces I have been finishing.

Right after I started making molds, I had a few questions asking me whether UTEE (or ultra thick embossing enamel) would work in the molds. I had plenty of UTEE but no way to melt it and pour as I did not own a melting pot used with UTEE. I was going to purchase one but right about that time, Ranger discontinued it to come out with a new style which was eventually released. I purchased it last month and finally arrived a few days ago.

I am glad to report, that UTEE does indeed work in my plastic molds that I have available for sale. The pieces you are seeing were made with clear embossing enamel and antique copper Pearl Ex mica powder using my rose cabochon and hard candy mold. The rose mold was made with my thickest plastic and the candy mold was made with a slightly thinner plastic and both worked out perfect.

UTEE with molds is a perfect way to create quick embellishments for jewelry, scrapbook projects, or any altered art. One of the best things about it, unlike resin, is if you don’t like your pour, pop it back into the melting pot, remelt it, and pour again. I created a video that I am embedding below but as you will see in the video, I did not mix the powder as thoroughly as needed and also the camera impeded my pouring a bit. Off camera, I threw the pieces back in and remade them. This time, the powders mixed all the way and I filled the cavities fully creating the pieces you see. They harden quickly and are really light weight.

A tip or two –

When you start pouring, don’t stop. The UTEE hardens quite quickly and will cause crease lines in your piece which I show below. Its better to over pour a bit and trim than to stop and get an ugly crease line.

Do not use any colorants that will react with heat. You will see in my video that I tried some white ink which reacted with heat and caused it to cook. Avoid these as it leave a residue.

After your finished or if you need to change colors, let your pan cool and any UTEE left in the pan will harden and you can remove it to keep for another time.

Well the long awaited Day of the Day Sugar Skull and the 35 mm Camera with Bezel Resin Molds have been finally added to the store. In addition to those, there are two Decoden style cabochon molds of a pretty little rose and a kawaii style hard candy. My favorite has to be the camera bezel. There is just so much you can do with bezels and I really like how it will look as a pendant with jump rings on each corner. I look forward to seeing what y’all do with the molds.

Below is the video showing the molds and info in living color plus a preview of molds to come…

I was very excited when I discovered the newly released Martha Stewart Molds and Clay. I love Martha and her products. She may be a bit on the pricier side but most of her products are of good quality. These molds are no different. She released two kits, 3 mold selections, and one alpha based mold. The kits comes with a package of white air-dry clay, four basic colors, floral wire and tape, two wooden tools, and four molds. The mold selections come with four molds. The designs are perfect sized for jewelry pieces and accents. They are very much like the Wilton Fondant push molds as far as quality. No ragged edges or bubbles in the mold and a very compressed silicone material. What I fell in love with were the little frames. I can do so much with them. My only complaint about the molds are some are a bit thin in the middle. I will definitely be purchasing more of her molds in the future.

On the other hand, I will not be purchasing her air-dry clay. I have never used air-dry clay before but I can’t imagine she wouldn’t be happy with the effect herself and would have been much better off with a clay more similar to polymer clay. The clay right out of the package is very similar in texture to what I remember cold porcelain and is very lightweight. It is very moist and colors mix beautifully in it. The problems begin when it starts to dry. As your rolling it into a ball and you are not releasing the moisture from the clay, it begins to crack and never really gets into a smooth, consistent ball. As it dries, it becomes very porous and cracks. It does not dry hard and is very flexible. If you have ever used bouncy putty, this clay dries very similar to this. I am not a fan.

This would not be a clay I would use for any jewelry purpose. The only use I could see it possibly for is scrapbooking, mostly because of its lightweight aspects. I could see it being painted and used in mini-books and such. I have recorded two videos, so you can see the molds up close and person.